POLITICS Defend Palestinians; Build A Movement Against War Trump Provocations Read more on the Middle East at Destabilize Middle East SocialistAlternative.org. Tom Crean seeing Israel as a key bas- tion along with reactionary Recent weeks have seen the Arab regimes during the Cold Trump administration engage in a War. Among well known poli- series of provocations in the Middle ticians, Bernie Sanders was East which are escalating tension virtually alone in openly criti- in the region and could even con- cizing the Israeli state's mur- tribute to detonating a full scale derous policies in Gaza. conflict. This points to the need The Committee for a for working people in the U.S. Workers International – with and internationally to stand up to which Socialist Alternative in Trump's reckless moves and build the U.S. is in political solidar- a powerful movement against war ity – opposes all the reaction- and imperialism. ary capitalist regimes of the Middle East many of them Series of Provocations brutal dictatorships. We stand with working people On May 14, Ivanka Trump and like the courageous trade Jared Kushner represented the unionists in Iran and Egypt administration at the opening of who stand up for their rights the new U.S. embassy in Jerusalem and often face savage repres- in the city which Palestinians also sion. The working class is the claim as their capital. The move was Ivanka, Jared Kushner, and Netenyahu celebrate while Israeli forces shoot Palestinians. only force capable of ending seen as a triumph by the reaction- endless wars and communal clerical regime despite the massive ratcheting up the bellicose rhetoric it directly. But working people in ary Netenyahu regime on the very divisions. We are for the withdrawal social discontent in Iranian society. again. the U.S. have no stake in continu- day that Israeli forces massacred 60 of all imperialist forces. It is also a slap in the face to Euro- While it seems hard to imagine ing imperialist policies based on Palestinian protesters at the border We stand in solidarity with the pean “allies.” By trying to blow up a how the reactionary Trump regime maintaining control of oil and other between Israel and the Gaza strip Palestinian people who demand an treaty the U.S. helped craft Trump could turn to the right, he has aban- resources which entail the mas- while shooting nearly three thousand end to occupation and for the real- shows how little interest he has in doned his isolationist rhetoric from sive costs of the military industrial more. Rubbing salt into the wounds ization of their legitimate national maintaining the postwar architec- the 2016 campaign – when he complex, terrorist blowback, and the the administration echoed the Israe- aspirations. But we also recognize ture of “international relations.” criticized the Iraq war and talked enormous suffering that these poli- lis in blaming the Palestinians for the national rights of the Israeli Trump's moves against Iran about getting out of Afghanistan – in cies have caused to people around the massacre. people. We do not see the Israeli are enormously destabilizing and favor of an aggressive reassertion of the world. These policies serve the This follows Trump's order to population as one reactionary mass point toward a regional war with imperialist interests. interests of corporate profits not the bomb targets in Syria in April in but as a class-divided society. As the U.S., Israel, and Saudi Arabia Trump's posture is also clearly an interests of ordinary people. response to an alleged chemical a recent statement from the CWI arrayed against Iran, with the back- attempt to distract from the crises weapons attack by the Assad regime pointed out: ing of Russia and perhaps China. encircling the administration. It on a community near Damascus. A Socialist Solution “It is a class society like others The Syrian as well as Yemen wars is a classic move by dictatorial or The real purpose of the U.S. raid across the globe with one of the already have had elements of proxy would-be dictatorial regimes to dis- People looking for a sharp oppo- though was to assert U.S. imperi- worst gaps between rich and poor conflict between these alliances. tract from problems by threatening sition to Trump's policies from the alism's interests as Assad and his – a small number of “tycoon” fami- Recently Israel bombed a series of a “small war.” In the tinderbox that leadership of the Democratic Party Russian and Iranian allies increas- lies at the top control the economy. positions inside Syria targeting Ira- is the Middle East today, this is a will be very disappointed. While ingly have the upper in the Syrian Israeli workers are regularly forced nian forces fighting on Assad's side. very dangerous game. On top of this, they defend the Iran deal crafted civil war. into struggle.” Trump's utterly uncritical support by Obama and John Kerry, they But by far the most consequen- On the basis of capitalism there for the Israeli regime are linked to have supported Trump's bombing tial step taken by Trump is to pull Shift to the Right is no way forward except more wars. his political alliance with the Chris- of Syria. The Democrats also advo- out of the Iran nuclear accord that That is why we call for two socialist It is very consequential that tian right in the U.S. Prominent cate an even more aggressive pos- also included key European nations states in Israel and Palestine where Trump has replaced his secretary of evangelical pastors who see sup- ture towards Russia. At every stage, as well as Russia and China. Trump working people can come together state and national security adviser port for Israel in apocalyptic theo- even if they seem more rational than and Netanyahu assert that the to work out their differences as part with the superhawks Mike Pompeo logical terms spoke at the Jerusalem Trump, they base their position on Iranian regime was still pursuing of a socialist confederation of the and John Bolton. As part of the embassy opening. the interests of corporate America nuclear weapons but almost all region. Bush administration, Bolton was In reality, despite all the bluster, not those of working people. credible experts agree that the deal Internationally and in the U.S. one of the most fiercely committed the position of the U.S. has been And although not a single was achieving its stated purpose of there is growing criticism of Israeli to the Iraq war and also called for enormously weakened globally and Democratic politician attended the preventing Iran from moving rapidly policies especially among young bombing Iran. Since coming on the in the Middle East in the past 15 embassy opening in Jerusalem, in that direction. people. Before Trump and his allies job, he has advocated the “Lybian years with the catastrophic Iraq Senator Chuck Schumer supported Trump's threat to re-impose drag the region into a new and pos- solution” for North Korea's nuclear war, the never-ending occupation the move saying “I sponsored legis- sanctions on Iran and on companies sibly much more devastating war, program, clearly implying regime of Afghanistan, and the increasing lation to do this two decades ago, that do business in Iran is clearly we must turn the solidarity with change. As we go to press, Trump assertiveness of Russian and Chi- and I applaud President Trump for aimed at forcing “regime change” the Palestinian people into a mass has announced he is cancelling his nese imperialism. Trump's ascen- doing it.” Historically, the Demo- in Iran. But in the short term it will movement against war and imperi- much-hyped summit with Kim Jong- dancy is both a reflection of this crats have been the more pro-Israel probably rally support behind the alism. J un as the administration started decline and now contributes to party based on U.S. imperialism SOCIALIST ALTERNATIVE.ORG • JUNE 2018 3 POLITICS Socialist Candidates Win PA Primaries Movement in the Streets Needed to Fight for Pro-Worker Policies Jim Grant taking their seats in the legislature, the full to pay for affordable hous- weight of the Democratic establishment will ing. Such a fight will meet In a rebuke to the agenda of the corporate- be brought to bear with its intense pressures stiff resistance at every step controlled Democratic Party establishment, to adapt to what it finds suitable. To fight from the Democratic Party four progressive state representative candi- this, it is necessary to link holding office to leadership. The experience dates in Pennsylvania, all women, won pri- building movements in working class commu- of Kshama Sawant as an mary elections on May 15. Most of them will nities free of corporate control. independent socialist in almost certainly go on to win in November. Seattle using her position The fact that they won by double digits on Democratic Costa Dynasty to help win important gains similar platforms of Medicare for All, a $15 Defeated for working people and the an hour minimum wage, affordable housing, experience of Bernie’s sand- and ending mass incarceration shows that a Innamorato and Lee both defeated mem- bagging by the DNC in 2016 bold progressive program – along the lines bers of the Costa dynasty, the cousins Dom point toward the necessity of of Bernie Sanders campaign in 2016 – reso- and Paul Costa, who represent the most forming a new party by and nates among wide sections of working-class regressive wing of the corporate Democratic for working people. people. machine.